A woven fabric, tenun ikat Sintang, is not a mere hand-stroke; it is also a replica of life. Starting from the process of weaving to the creation of the motif of the fabric, all contain the story of life and spirituality of the ancestral heritage of the Dayak tribe in the village.
When setting foot for the first time in a traditional Ensaid house in Kelam Permai subdistrict, Sintang regency, West Kalimantan, on Sunday morning (March, 12), we witnessed a 20-room long house that was 150 meters in length and 16 meters in width. The traditional touch of the house that was built in 1986 was strongly felt.
As we entered the traditional Ensaid house, we were welcome by the smiles of the weavers. They weaved in the middle part of the house, called ruai, which is a long and wide room.
That morning, after returning from church, the women spent the day weaving. There are 56 weavers in the Betang house.
Limah, 67, one of the weavers at the traditional Ensaid house, smiled warmly to say hello, while her hands were briskly weaving tenun ikat Sintang. It is called ikat because the fabric pattern is made by tying the yarn on the dyer bracket. The yarn was dyed many times to obtain the desired pattern. The dyeing technique is said to be the oldest in the world. Tenun ikat Sintang is red, black and white.
"It\'s called pua/kumbu. Kumbu because it is the size of a blanket. Kumbu means blanket in the local language. The kumbu fabric is among the oldest type. Weaving the fabric usually takes five days. However, if calculated from the initial process, starting from opening the thread, arranging it, making a motif to weave, it can take months," she said.
The kumbu type has several motifs that tell about their environment and life. One of them is the motif of a boat. The boat is an important means of transportation for the Dayak living near the river to travel to their farms or other places. In addition, the boat is also used when looking for vegetables.
There is also a motif of a kebuk (pillar), which means a pillar of a traditional house inhabited by Dayak villagers. In creating a pillar, people work together. A kumbu fabric with various motifs of kebuk describes happiness or success in meeting the needs of everyday life. The motif also gives a message to youth that if they want to get married, they should be able to build a house and later become a protector of their wives and children.
Another type of woven fabric is kebat, which is usually used as a sarong and cloth in various rituals. Kebat fabric also has several motifs. One of them is encerebung. "The motif is at the end of the fabric, shaped like a pointed stem similar to a bamboo shoot. The motif begins and ends in line with the main motif. Once there is a encerebung motif on the edge of the fabric, there is usually the main motif in the middle of the fabric," said Limah.
On the left and right side of the fabric, there are also motifs depicting langgai uwi, a plant used by ancestors to tie the house poles to make them strong and durable. The moral message of the motifs in the fabric is to provide benefits for the survival of human life.
Spirituality
"The kumbu and kebat fabrics are considered old weaving because they have been passed down from generation to generation. We are taught to weave from the age of 12. We start with an easy motif, then learn to weave more difficult ones," Limah said.
Limah learned to weave from her mother. She began by weaving a simple motif before weaving more difficult motifs. According to local belief, beginners will usually experience body aches. So, the weaver must make a wicker basket to remove the pain.
Some weavers have to weave motifs that have magical powers, especially crocodile motifs. Those who can weave animal motifs are usually old and unmarried weavers. Therefore, the consequences are great. In fact, weaving animal motifs is based on dreams. The fabric should be first used as a pillow for three nights.
If the dream\'s meaning is good, the weaver makes an offering and weaving continues. However, if the meaning of the dream is bad, the process is stopped. If it is continued, it is believed the weaver will face trouble in life.
Sluggish
Maria, 40, another weaver, said Sintang weaving was not produced in the 1970s because of difficulty in obtaining the raw materials. In the past, the raw materials were processed from scratch, from the planting of cotton to the making of dye from things such as leaves, roots, stems and tubers.
Each process took a very long time. In fact, it could take years to make a fabric. Moreover, at that time, fabric was woven when a cultural event was approaching. They were not obliged to weave.
In 1999, weaving ikat Sintang was revived. "The revival of weaving ikat Sintang began after a visit by Pastor Jacques Maessen SMM, a Dutchman who served in the local church. He admired the old weaving and asked us to weave again because he said weaving was a precious ancestral heritage," she said.
Pastor Jacques took the initiative to gather the weavers to find a way for ikat Sintang to be preserved. "He initially assisted us by providing yarn and dye. After that, we were assisted in establishing the Independent Dayak Weaving Ikat Handcraft Cooperative , " Maria said.
Market access
Plasidus Sagiman, the man in charge of education and training at the cooperative, said the cooperative was formed to help the weavers obtain raw materials and find buyers.
"Weavers buy yarn and dye from cooperatives. Woven products are sold to cooperatives," Sagiman said. A scarf is sold for Rp 30,000 to Rp 35,000. Kumbu clothes sell for Rp 500,000 to Rp 800,000 each, kebat fabric for Rp 300,000 to Rp 500,000 per piece and a shawl for Rp 100,000 to Rp 150,000.
The cooperative also helps the weavers find buyers by holding exhibitions abroad. "We do not set how much each weaver has to weave. All the weavers arrange their own weaving work. Weavers are also allowed to sell their fabrics to buyers outside the cooperative," he said. Besides Kelam Permai subdistrict, there are also many weavers in Sintang, Dedai, Kayan Hilir and Binjai Hulu subdistricts. Total active weavers in these areas number about 300 people.
